Uhuru defends Raila Odinga over attacks on his age, “we are not electing a marathon runner”
2 min readUhuru defends Raila Odinga over attacks on his age by his opponents-DP Ruto and his Kenya Kwanza allies.
President Uhuru Kenyatta has defended Azimio presidential candidate, Raila Odinga, over attacks on his age by DP William Ruto and his allies.
Speaking on Tuesday, July 26, in Nakuru, where he formally opened the 1,000-acre Naivasha Special Economic Zone (SEZ), Uhuru said that age was not a major factor in his succession struggle.
Kenya didn’t need a president to run marathons, he said, but rather to make wise choices for millions of Kenyans.
“Age is not a disease. Kenyans are not looking for a person to go and run a marathon on their behalf, we already have Kipchoge (Eliud) for that.
“We want a leader who is of sound mind, has wisdom, humble, loves the people, and has the ability to unite Kenyans and bring them to work together,” Uhuru stated.
Uhuru urged the populace to support “the old man who was touring around the country appealing for votes,” notwithstanding his insistence that he was not endorsing any particular candidate.
Indirectly criticizing William Ruto, the president accused him of being conceited and of lying to the voters on a regular basis.
“Imagine, a whole leader telling Kenyans that the port was moved from Kilindini to Naivasha. Do I look like I have the powers to carry the ocean from Mombasa?
“Both the people of Naivasha and Mombasa have benefited from the project. Or does it mean that the communities living here have no right to have their lives improved?” he wondered.
Raila’s decision to skip the presidential debate has drawn criticism from Ruto’s allies, who assert that he wouldn’t last the full hour and a half.
They further asserted that due to Raila’s advanced age, his running mate, Martha Karua, would be in charge of managing the government’s affairs.
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